Directed by WIlliam A. Wellman
Screen Play by Charles Schnee
Story by Frank Capra
Starring Robert Taylor, Denise Darcel, Hope Emerson, John McIntire
On the third Thursday of most months, The Western Film Preservation Society has been running B Westerns at NC State’s McKimmon Center, here in Raleigh, since 1981. This week’s second feature (Thursday the 20th) is a bit of a departure: William Wellman’s Westward The Women (1951). It’s one of the best Westerns of the 50s.
The other film is In Early Arizona (1938) starring Bill Elliott, Dorothy Gulliver, Harry Woods and Jack Ingram — and directed by Joseph Levering. (It’s a bit of a stretch, but I guess that makes this a Wild Bill Wednesday post.) The meetings get going at 6:45.
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This is a great movie and Robert Taylor ,John McIntire and all the women are fantastic in it .The copy I have is on Impulso who always do a good transfer.
One of the best Westerns ever I think. There are echoes of the picture in the new Mad Max movie, as strange as that might sound.
That’s an interesting idea. Haven’t seen the new Max thing. As much as I loved the first two, I absolutely loathed Beyond Thunderdome — one of my biggest disappointments ever in a movie theater. My boss saw the new one and loved it. Have you seen it?
This could lead us into our weirdest thread ever.
I thought Mad Max: Fury Road was excellent and plan on seeing it again while it’s still in the theater. But, you need to be in a Mad Max frame of mind: little dialogue, 2 hours of near non-stop action inventively staged. Worthy follow up to Road Warrior.
When you see Fury Road, tell me what you thought about the WTW aspects and whether you found it better that Thunderdome.
Not to let the thread get too weird yet, just to throw my two cents in that WESTWARD THE WOMEN is one of the great Westerns ever. This is my favorite movie of William Wellman and he made his share of memorable ones.
Anyone who lives in L.A. or nearby should know it’s also showing in 35 here on June 12 on Wellman series at UCLA, with second feature YELLOW SKY, also a wonderful movie and Wellman’s close second best Western I believe.
The NC screening by Western Film Preservation Society sounds like really imaginative programming to me. I like the idea of a B and an A together.
WATCH MAD MAX FURY ROAD NOW !!!
Everyone in driving distance of NC State should go!!! WESTWARD THE WOMEN is one of my all-time favorite movies. As mentioned above, it’s one of the best Westerns ever.
I’ll be there at UCLA to see WTW and YELLOW SKY in June. (Blake, I double-checked the date, it’s the 14th.) William Wellman Jr. will be signing his new book on his father at the screening. He’ll also be at the previous day’s screening of ISLAND IN THE SKY which I won’t miss either!!
Best wishes,
Laura
Thanks for correcting me on that date, Laura. I had it mixed up in my mind with an appointment of my own on the 12th but know it’s Sunday, so would have seen the 14th looking at the calendar. I’m just glad that you made this correction for others who might be able to go.
ISLAND IN THE SKY is another excellent Wellman movie. Wellman had been a flyer as most people know and has lots of flying and aviation movies going back to the classic WINGS.
But Wellman made all kinds of movies and that reminds me of something he said that would warm the hearts of anyone who followed brief discussion of our love of and respect for genre cinema at Ridin’ the High Country in the present thread there. Wellman once observed very insightfully that American cinema was a cinema of genres above all and he took that to heart and simply felt he wanted to do them all, meaning work in all the genres. Great attitude.
Yes, wonderful attitude from Wellman there, Blake. And I’d just like to add my enthusiasm to that of Laura and Blake. WTW is a fabulous western – tough, rugged, tender at times – and Taylor and McIntire together are terrific.
Can’t say enough good things about WTW. If you’re a Western fan, a Robert Taylor fan, believe in great stories about strong women, like black and white, are a William Wellman fan and like to pick out character actors in a film, than WTW is a must. And by the way, all that can be said about Yellow Sky except replacing Robert Taylor with Gregory Peck.
I’m reading the William Wellman book now written by his son. Laura, I’m jealous of you being able to go to the UCLA showing of Westward the Women and Yellow Sky and meeting William Wellman Jr., I’m from Ohio, don’t think I’ll make it. What a great ambassador William Wellman Jr. is for his fathers legacy.
I saw Hope Emerson in an Audie Murphy movie last week (had the word Petticoat in the title) and she played a similar character, being a leader of a group of women who’s lives came into peril while living in the west. Not as strong a movie as WTW but a good one never the less.
The Guns of Fort Petticoat (1957: George Marshall). I agree with you, Elise–it isn’t on the same level as WTW but is a good Western. Hope Emerson was ideal for these films and is great in both of them. In WTW, that whole group of women really puts a glow in–surely the best chance any of them ever had.
Glad you mentioned WTW and YS are in both in black and white, beautifully photographed by William Mellor and Joe MacDonald respectively. I’ve seen YS more than once theatrically in good prints but this will be my first time to see WTW in 35. Like Laura, have been looking forward to this UCLA screening and will be a summer highlight for me.
Mad Max-Fury Road despite getting a 98% Rotten Tomatoes
rating could only manage $45 million on its opening weekend.
Not good for a $150 Million movie.
Furthermore it was totally trounced by Pitch Perfect 2 ‘s $69 Million
opening,which is more than Pitch Perfect ! achieved in its entire run.
Further evidence that we now need a whole raft of Universal Vault
releases as besides PP2 they have been cleaning up with Furious 7
(over a billion worldwide) and Fifty Shades.
If Universal USA couldn’t care less about their Westerns at least
there are plenty appearing elsewhere especially Germany.
I have noted,a few threads back how sensational Koch Media’s Blu-Ray
is of CANYON PASSAGE.
As fate would have it Panamint UK are also giving this truly great film
the Blu-Ray treatment as well.
I simply cannot think of a film more worthy of the upgrade to Blu-Ray
as it’s one of the most beautiful looking films ever made.
The film is not simply one of the great Westerns of the Forties its one
of the best Westerns ever. (I sort of stole a line from Blake,above)
Viewing the film in high definition is quite an experience and confirms
that this film is a masterwork,no less.
I know several regulars of this blog are great admirers of this film,in
particular,Blake,Laura and Colin.
I do hope those folks will get to see the new hi-def version,I just know
that they will be as amazed with it as I was.
Arguably the biggest budget Jacques Tourneur ever worked with,
there are various tales of how he drifted away from the Hollywood
mainstream. but CANYON PASSAGE shows a great director at the
top of his game.
Dana Andrews has one of the best roles of his career,with Susan
Hayward never more ravishing,Brian Donlevy never better,Ward
Bond never nastier.
CANYON PASSAGE is also a major credit for producer Walter Wanger
who had the most rollercoaster career of all Hollywood producers.
More or less rejected by Hollywood after his commercial and critical
flop JOAN OF ARC he was given a lifeline by Walter Mirisch who
took him over to Allied Artists to make a few quickies.
Wanger later graduated to cult classics like RIOT IN CELL BLOCK 11
and INVASION OF THE BODY SNATCHERS…he was back in business.
Sadly not learning from past mistakes his last film was the ill fated
CLEOPATRA.
CANYON PASSAGE is a truly wonderful film and a high point for
everyone involved. The fact TWO companies are giving us a Blu-Ray
edition is testament to how this great films reputation has grown.
Richard W if you are out there I answered your questions regarding
German DVD’s/Blu-Rays on the BLACK PATCH thread.
I have mentioned previously and will repeat myself that a Blu-Ray of
WESTWARD THE WOMEN would be wonderful.
I’m another fan of WESTWARD THE WOMEN.
I think this has been discussed here earlier, in another thread, but can someone enlighten me? In the upcoming George Sherman set from Koch, the description says 2 blu-rays and 1 DVD. The titles are RIVER LADY, RED CANYON and LAST OF THE FAST GUNS; so which two are the blu-rays?
Mike Kuhns ,don’t scare me like that .I have the GEORGE SHERMAN set on order and I don’t have a BLU-RAY player .I checked and you can buy it either on BLU-RAY or DVD separately .Like you, I also bought THE ETERNAL SEA from Germany .I also just received JOHNNY GUITAR with Sterling Hayden and THE SECRET OF CONVICT LAKE which was really great.
Yes, there is a DVD set and a BLU-RAY set, but the BLU-RAY set is said to contain 2 BLU-RAYs and 1 DVD.
Mike,
I don’t know which of the three films in the Koch set are Blu-Ray
at the moment. I am only guessing but I should imagine LAST OF
THE FAST GUNS and RIVER LADY will be Blu Ray because there are
already excellent quality DVDs of both those films already out in
Europe. RED CANYON is the rarest of the three films I should imagine
that will be the one that’s on DVD but I cannot, at the moment, confirm
this.
To answer your question on the BLACK PATCH thread,yes Terry
Gilkyson is the person who warbles the theme tune over RED
SUNDOWN.
Interesting these latest Republic Olive releases.
Now what lots of us are wondering……will Olive obtain further titles
from the Republic (Paramount) vaults?
I can’t seem to find the George Sherman box. Anyone have a link?
The German trailer for AT GUNPOINT looks fine and in widescreen:
http://www.amazon.de/In-Acht-Bann-Gunpoint-Filmjuwelen/dp/B00R5AI7LM/ref=pd_sim_74_3?ie=UTF8&refRID=0428EAAQKHJRWJQDSVQ8
Anyone have it? I’m conflicted about buying it. Being a region 2, it will play 4% faster than it should on my region 1 / A players, but I really want to get the film.
Richard,
The German DVD of AT GUNPOINT I do believe does not
have an English soundtrack. Please check carefully.
Only about 1 in 10 of these Film Jewels DVDs of old Republic/
Allied Artists Westerns have English soundtracks.
The Sherman set is not yet up on Amazon.de as its not released until
August.
You can check it out at the Koch website:
http://www.kochmedia-film.de
Hey Richard, that AT GUNPOINT does look good,far better than
any off air copy that I’ve seen.
Amazon de does state that it’s in German only.
At the moment only BRIMSTONE and RIDE THE MAN DOWN are
listed as in English from the Republic goodies that Film Jewels are
releasing.
I’m dying to see how these cats handle Trucolor.
THE TALL STRANGER is also supposedly in English but at 1.85
as opposed to 2.35 widescreen. If the p.q. looks OK I will certainly
get it.
DRAGOON WELLS MASSACRE looks good too I.m really sick about
that one being in German only,I really want that film!
It’s rather neat that Amazon de are including trailers for some of
these films.
Iv’e also e-mailed Carlotta to see if their forthcoming Blu-Ray
of COWBOY has “forced” French subtitles,I’ll keep you posted.
I’m off line for a few days,be interesting to see what transpires
here when I return on Tuesday!
Film Jewels? Never heard of them. Where does it say Film Jewels are releasing Brimstone and Ride the Man Down? I’ve been wanting those two awful bad …
Richard–W and John K ,THE GEORGE SHERMAN SET is on Amazon De as I have ordered it from them and there is a picture of it as well.
If you go to Alive AG and do a search ,you will find both RIDE THE MAN DOWN and BRIMSTONE.
Thanks for the input, everybody.
WESTWARD THE WOMEN should have been the start of women’s westerns, but nobody picked up the ball, so to speak. It’s tough and uncompromising and gives the actresses several of the best roles women ever had in westerns. I like the down-to-earth grittiness of it. There’s no other western quite like it. In 1955 MANY RIVERS TO CROSS re-united Robert Taylor with Eleanor Parker. It starts out in Kentucky and travels west. Delightful period film, but not quite a western. Richard Pearce’s HEARTLAND (1979), about a mail-order bride who decides to start her own ranch instead, has the same feel and integrity as WESTWARD THE WOMEN even though it’s a very different kind of film. But if you can appreciate WESTWARD THE WOMEN you might like it. It remains something of a sleeper but I consider it one of the finest westerns of the 1970s:
http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00004XMSU/ref=olp_product_details?ie=UTF8&me=
Anyone see MEEKS’ CROSSING (2012) ? This feminist take on WESTWARD THE WOMEN is so abrasive I wanted to throw a shoe at the screen. All the women do in this agenda-driven tale is pick up rocks and hide within their sun bonnets while their clueless men lead the wagon train in circles. The married couples are always framed with their backs to one another, expressing visually how the two sexes are at odds. The writer-director needed to read up on some Santa Fe Trail narratives — most of which were written by women — before she attempted this perverse, unnatural and historically wrong-headed film.